Chapter 80

A Story from a Certain World Line The Captive Heroine and the Final Boss?’s Debut Episode (So damn hot. Our university temporarily transi

A Story from a Certain World Line

The Captive Heroine and the Final Boss?’s Debut Episode

(So damn hot. Our university temporarily transitioned to online classes, but it's still so damn hot. I don't even want to move aside from switching to the cool side of the pillow.)

Eight had left the stage.

That is, she was carried off by the Keter, the King of the Ten Archangels of Sefirot──It was a development that some viewers had anticipated.

These are the contents of the episode in question.

Having jumped into the power of the rampaging Mea, who had fallen into Burst state and transformed into a dragon of light, En joined up with Eight, who had entered ahead of it, and called out to Mea’s spirit.

He simply, earnestly affirmed the existence of his younger sister, conveying his desire for her to come back.

Pushed on by Eight’s guidance, En pressed onward and came face to face with Mea, Chesed... and Charon, a mysterious goddess-like beauty who claimed to be the "Will of the World Tree Sefira."

—Ah, she’s the one from Keter’s flashback! Viewers who had been watching Fairy Savers ∞ up to now would have realized with one glance.

Ever since the entering the final arc, Keter’s past recollections were almost always inserted in the beginning.

With an attitude as if they had already known each other, Charon exchanged a look with Eight then gave her an order: “Open the Book of Knowledge.”

Eight responded to those words with a knowing look, and right after she activated her ability, she gently embraced Mea’s body.

Then—immense darkness was released from Eight’s notebook, and in the blink of an eye, the white world was filled up by ominous blackness.

“What... what’s happening!?”

『This is… Eight-sama’s power is rampaging...?』

En and the others were flustered in the face of the sudden torrent of dark power.

The notebook, which continued to emit an enormous amount of darkness, separated from the hand of its owner, Eight, floated into the air, and settled into the hands of the woman in silver—Charon—as if it was being drawn toward her.

Charon caressed the cover of the notebook—a cover with a warped tree depicted on it—with her finger and spoke calmly.

『This is not a rampage. The surplus of the power is merely overflowing from the completed ‘Book of Knowledge.’』

“What...? What are you saying...?”

『The Book of Knowledge...?』

The Book of Knowledge—that likely referred to the notebook that the Supernatural Ability Phantom Thief T.P. Eight Olishua used when stealing or using another’s supernatural ability.

When Charon snapped shut the open page, the emission of darkness abated.

At the same time, as the swirling vision cleared, En and Chesed rushed over in a panic to the two girls who had collapsed there.

“Mea! Eight...!”

『There’s no need for concern. They’re both merely asleep.』

Both of them were unconscious. Charon described their condition in a detached tone, but it was that very lack of emotion that caused En to begin to feel distrust from their first meeting.

From his perspective, she was a stranger he had just met for the first time.

He had just heard from Chesed that she had protected Mea’s heart from going into a berserk state, but even so, the sight of her taking possession of the dark notebook with a calm expression made his intuition as a Saver bring about an unpleasant premonition.

『...I’ll carry the two of them.』

“...Aah. I’m counting on you.”

Though the situation didn’t make sense to them, En and Chesed prioritized what they needed to do now and moved to look after the two girls.

Chesed absorbed part of the darkness that had just spread, causing his small bird-sized body to quickly transform to the size of an ostrich.

En placed Mea’s body on Chesed’s back and was about to do the same for Eight—but at that moment.

『Do not touch Daat.』

“──!?”

A flash.

A bullet of light zipped past right in front of En.

Reflexively distancing himself from Eight to avoid the attack, En widened his eyes and fixed his gaze on the intruder.

It was the archangel in white with ten wings—Keter.

In this white world—in this world painted in darkness—he had finally revealed himself.

『To step into Sefira’s domain with your own power… Keter, you’ve grown strong.』

『I am not someone who can be endlessly repelled by a domain crafted by the likes of someone who has outlived their time.』

Having come here himself, Keter first glared at Charon, then shifted his focus to Mea and Eight.

En stepped forward and obstructed his line of sight with unconcealed wariness.

“Are you planning to kidnap Mea…!?”

『That’s no longer necessary. Thanks to Charon… and Daat.』

“What?”

The words of En, who was wary that Keter had come, as originally planned, to consume Mea, the “Mugenkou,” was met with a dissatisfied denial from Keter.

──Then, in the next moment, the sleeping princess's body gently floated into the air.

“…Wait!”

En immediately sensed Keter’s intention and extended his arm, but before his hand could reach her, she—T.P. Eight Olishua—fell into Keter’s arms without resistance.

Was it the power of Telekinesis, the sacred art Eight had displayed a few times before as one of the supernatural abilities she stole?

Just as Charon took possession of the notebook, Keter took Eight’s body into his arms.

『You should thank Daat. With Mea’s power extracted by her, the current Mea is now no different from an incompetent without a supernatural ability… There is no longer any value in me depriving her. The Mugenkou Project has failed.』

“Daat… Binah also mentioned that several times… So that’s Eight’s real name.”

Now that Eight had stolen the power given to Mea as the “Mugenkou,” there was nothing left to deprive her of.

Daat──Eight had likely used her ability with that purpose from the beginning.

To protect Mea, as a means to keep her from being devoured by Keter, Eight saved her in her own phantom thief-like way, by stealing the power from Mea herself.

──But that meant the value of the sacrifice had shifted from Mea to her.

That he should be grateful for her nobility was completely true.

“You don’t have to tell me that. It’s not just this time. On this journey, I… we’ve been saved by Eight so many times. I don’t think I could ever thank her enough.”

『En…』

En muttered as he deeply reflected on their journey through this Fairy World.

She was originally an unknown presence whose true character and goal were unknown who forcefully went with them, but by the time he realized it, he no longer had any doubts about her acting like their comrade.

It had begun to feel natural that she was there. While she was an enigmatic presence, she had the friendliness of a gentle older sister next door.

Looking back, it hadn’t been a long time, but as they spent that time together, all of En’s group had become aware of her nature.

The girl known as T. P. Eight Olishua was a difficult person who uses roundabout phrasing, evades answering questions, and toys with the hearts of innocent children, but… Her essence was that of a very kind girl, a good-natured person who’s always itching to save someone.

And because he had seen her──T. P. Eight Olishua──En no longer had any uneasiness about her intentions.

No matter who she was—no matter what her true identity might be—the Savers had come to trust this “adorable big sister who acts worse than she really is” enough to want to believe in her.

It was precisely because he’d come to realize that feeling that En now felt so displeased with Keter, who had barged in and carried Eight.

"That's why I want to properly thank her. Will you let me speak with her?"

If her true identity was the archangel called "Daat" that Keter and Binah spoke of, then she must have been a comrade of the Ten Archangels of Sefirot from the beginning.

If that’s the case, then even if Keter stole Mea’s power, surely he wouldn’t go so far as to consume a comrade, but be that as it may, Akatsuki En hated Keter.

──Ah, I hate him… I really don’t like this guy.

Facing him once more, En understood just how childish his own thoughts were.

Those sorrowful eyes and empty gaze, as if he had given up on everything in this world—when he saw those in Keter, he couldn’t help but be reminded of someone who used to act as if they were more unfortunate than anyone else in the world.

To an outsider, it was an intense self-loathing* so ridiculous that they might think──Look who's talking. (tl note: 同族嫌悪/disliking people similar to oneself)

『I refuse.』

Keter bluntly said over his shoulder, casting a look of contempt at En.

He glanced at T.P. Eight Olishua, whose sleeping face was exposed so vulnerably in his arms, then continued.

『You humans truly are incorrigible beings. Even after all the guidance you’ve received, you still want to rely on Daat?』

“I’m not thinking anything so presumptuous. I just want to thank our benefactor who saved us.”

『When she wakes up, I’ll tell her as much myself, as many times as you like. You people don’t need to be involved anymore.』

“Why? Why can you say that? Did Eight say she didn’t want to be involved with us?”

『…She wouldn’t do that. That’s the kind of woman she is.』

“You…”

It seemed that Keter was very displeased with the fact that Eight had taken humanity’s side.

En pressed the King of the archangels, who spoke so thoroughly without emotion.

But then, seeing Keter’s expression as he gazed at Eight, he suddenly realized something. Because of that, En calmed down his heated emotions and asked with a cool head.

“Eight said she loved this world… including humans. Regardless of good or evil, holy beasts or humans, she said everything that lives in this world is precious… and she wanted to stop the fighting. If you cherish Eight, why can’t you understand her feelings?”

At first, En thought that Keter had abducted Eight, who had taken in Mea’s power, in order to devour her.

But noticing the change in his gaze as he looked at the sleeping princess, En immediately sensed that wasn’t the case.

En felt that his nihilistic eyes, just while looking at Eight, seemed to soften ever so slightly.

Though he had been so cold toward Mea, the being he himself had created—and should have recognized as his daughter—he clearly harbored special feelings for Eight.

The reason En could pick up on this dual nature, despite Keter’s lack of expression that only a perceiver could see, was because he, too, had once experienced emotional wounds. Since then, he had shut his heart to everyone except for a particular girl—Mitsui Akari.

Maybe for Keter, Eight… the angel called Daat is like Akari is to me──En became aware of that possibility.

『It’s unpleasant.』

“──!?”

Keter’s response was not in words, but in force.

Still carrying Eight, he flapped his ten wings, and the storm they generated blew En’s body away.

The one who caught and supported En from behind was the woman in silver—Charon, the creator of this white world.

『Still not enough.』

“What…?”

Carrying Eight’s notebook in her right hand, its cover etched with a figure of a warped tree glinting dully, Charon caught En's blown-away body with just her left hand.

In a whisper, she spoke.

『It’s still not enough to challenge Keter. Akatsuki En… You have yet to become a true Liberator.』

“A true Liberator…? What are you talking about? What do you—!?”

The moment he turned around to press for the meaning of her words, Charon poked En’s forehead with her finger.

In that moment, light spread from En’s forehead and, in the blink of an eye, enveloped En’s entire body.

『The child of man called T.P. Eight Olishua demonstrated their potential and became a true Tuner. Now is your turn, Akatsuki En… I hope for your awakening.』

“Wait—”

『En！？』

The moment he tried to raise his voice in this incomprehensible situation, Akatsuki En disappeared from the scene.

As if he was teleported, he disappeared in an instant.

Glancing at the astonished Chesed, Charon asserted in a detached manner.

『Child of Mercy, there is no need to worry. I have just given Akatsuki En a trial… I too will disappear from here.』

『Ah──』

Then, as if being expelled, Chesed, carrying Mea on his back, also disappeared from this white world.

In an instant, only two people remained in the place where silence returned, Charon and Keter.

After a brief moment of silent stares between them, it was Keter who spoke first.

『I will not hand over Daat. …Not ever again.』

『...I see.』

Holding the black-haired girl, Keter’s arms trembled slightly as he supported her.

He shifted his gaze toward the dark notebook Charon held, glaring at her with eyes intense enough to slay demons (oni).

『After completing the ‘Book of Knowledge’… do you plan to incarnate again?』

『That is… likely what will be the case. But that is a means, not the end.』

『…Whatever you’re scheming at this point doesn’t matter. But if your actions bring calamity to this world… then even if it’s the will of Ein Sof or the World Tree, I will, without fail, destroy you.』

『That is fine. But don’t be anxious. My plan will not denigrate this world any more than it is now.』

『I see.』

Keter knit one's brows at Charon's definitive words, but he turned on his heel and walked away.

As if he judged that further question and answer with her was unnecessary.

『…Never show your face again.』

The moment Keter left the scene with those words, and the white world began to vanish.

Outside, it was just as the dragon of light vanished.

──What follows from there connects to the development in the previous episode.

Keter, carrying Eight, easily evaded the pursuit of the Savers and flew away toward the World Tree “Sefira.”

It marked a major turning point in the story—a “Heroine Separation Event.”

At the same time, seasoned fans judged this as the “Protagonist’s Final Strengthening Event,” that comes at the climax of the story.

Some of those in front of the TV felt a sense of loss, as if a gaping hole had opened up in their hearts.

Others couldn’t keep up with the tumultuous developments, the suggestive conversations, and the appearance of a mysterious new character, their minds unable to put things in order.

And then there were those who became aware of a new kink in themselves, or for some reason, became aroused.

But even so, this episode wasn’t over.

Even after Eight was taken away, the battle with the Ten Archangels of Sefirot who remained on the scene continued.

Mea’s rampage had ended, and she was able to be rescued by being carried on Chesed’s back, but Akatsuki En was sent flying somewhere by Charon and went missing.

Kazaoka Tsubasa was knocked down by Keter, and Chouta was in a hard fight against Gevurah.

And Binah, the greatest fighting power on their side, had been fighting on equal terms against Chokmah, but was caught off guard after seeing the scene of Eight being taken away by Keter, and the gap caused by her agitation was exploited, leading to her falling into a disadvantage.

It was then.

──The time has come.

Suddenly, a voice echoed in the heads of all those fighting.

From the viewers’ perspective, they knew that the voice was Charon’s.

The moment she announced her meaningful words to all present, the earth throughout Elohim trembled.

And then, from the depths of the earth, it appeared.

The Qlippoth of the abyss sealed within a cage of light—its name was Sheriruth.

The indescribable and grotesque devil (majin) reaching up to 100 meters in length, as if acting in concert with Charon’s voice, was released from its long seal.

(author: Charon-sama pulling shitty moves like she’s the true final boss

Accompanied with Keter pulling mysterious moves like he’s the true protagonist)

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